It was really surprising to wake up yesterday to find the Sun out. We're heading towards Portree with several stops along the way. The moors are beautiful in the sunlight, a completely different mood from their misty, foggy look.
We stopped at the Commando Memorial, a 17 foot statue dedicated to the men of the original British Commando Forces raised during World War II. The bronze sculpture overlooks the commando training grounds during WW2. Nearby is a separate area where people can leave a memorial for deceased members of their families. I found the memorial area very touching.
We continued along the 2 lane A82, very scenic and in places very winding. We thought it amusing that there were few speed limit signs. The best it got were arrow markings on the road on which the word “SLOW” was printed. How slow? There were also signs that showed that the road was becoming curvy. But how slow is slow enough? How fast can you go on the straighter sections?
I think we may have passed 2 small towns on the way to Eilean Donan, a castle at the confluence of three sea lochs. The original castle was built in the thirteenth century; it became a stronghold of the Clan Mackenzie and their allies, the Clan MacRae. Since it's roots in the 1200s, it has been built and rebuilt 4 times.
Partially destroyed by the British in 1719 as a response to the Jacobite rebellion and rebuilt in phases over the years, most recently in the early 1900s by a MacRae descendant. There are four generations of the MacRae family past, present and future who are still the Constables of Eilean Donan Castle today. It was interesting to walk the grounds and read about the history that took place there. We were struck by the reverence given to the Scottish warriors over the years, especially for WWI. Since the newest castle renovation was done in 1932, that was completely understandable.
From Eilean Donan, we drove on to Portree, on the north eastern coast of Skye. It has a lovely harbor, and the colored houses along the shore are distinctive.
At Portree, we checked into our hotel, right on the harbor, and discovered that parking is limited -- extremely limited. There are 10 spaces for 42 rooms. We got directions from the lovely "grandma" at the checkin desk, and set off to try our luck finding somewhere to leave the car for the night. Lo and behold, we got one in the tiny hotel lot, overlooked by others because it was behind the other cars.
Thank you God, for a sunny day!
Photos here
No comments:
Post a Comment